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Need suggestions for first setup of my SS

I have read here that a lot of people have problems with the super shelter and want my first test to go well, and be as close as I can come to a test without user error.

Ok the details, its one night, I will be using a HH hyperlight side zip with SS and I will have the HH over cover if needed, it will be fall in michigan overnight temps between 32° an 45°, I will be using a EN rated 25° down sleeping bag, I will have long underware a light premaloft jacket for around camp (or if needed for sleep but doubt it) and I do have winter backpacking experience.

Any suggestions will help a lot.

By the way the ° symbol can be typed by holding Alt and typing 0176 and release Alt, I looked it up.

1: take the trouble to get them set up right, per HH instructions. There is really nothing to it, but many a person has been faked out on the first go around. It is not that hard to get something upside down or inside out on the 1st try. Pay close attention, watch the videos! It's ridiculously easy once you know what to do, and yet tricky the 1st time set up.http://hennessyhammock.com/media/C38/#content

2: just remember

A: undercover foot end opening towards the foot end of hammock for bottom entry, or whichever end is designated foot end for zip models.

Side holes on UC lined up with loops on pad and with hammocks side pull out elastics going first through the pad loops and then out through these side holes on the undercover, all lined up correctly.

And black edging on UC UP.

B: pad with egg crate up, wide part at the head end and pad's left side tie out loops lined up with left hammock side guy out elastics and left UC exit openings. But you will probably find the right/foot end loop on the pad is closer to the foot end of the hammock than is the rt side tie out elastics on the hammock. Just make sure the shoulder one ( left on a bottom entry) is exactly lined up for pad loop with UC exit opening with hammock tie out.

Once the foot end opening is at the foot and the head end of the pad is at the hammocks head end, there are 3 things to line up: the left hammock elastic pull outs cords
going through the left pad loops
and then out the left UC exit holes.
If these are lined up, the other side should be automatically lined up.

3: don't forget your $3, 2 oz WM space blanket on top of the pad. Just get the WM one until you can get the nicer Heat Sheet from REI or some where. The WM one will function fine, just not as nice and quiet. If you will not use the SB, you probably won't be near as warm as you could be and odds are you will have a lot of condensation.

4: If it's really cold, take whatever insulation you don't need to sleep in and tuck it between the pad and Undercover. Or if it is something real light, like dry wool socks, just on top of the pad, under the SB. Believe me, you can get a huge boost this way!

5: After you have tried it a few times and given it a fair trial, go to my recent thread which is a poll for HHSS users and let us know if it worked for you, or if it didn't.

Ahh, old ASCII codes -- I memorized a few key ones back in the DOS days...another favorite os Alt-0149, if I want to create my own custom bullet point • -- of course, not everyone is posting from a computer -- the * is just handy when posting from a phone (or if you just want to use less keystrokes)

As to the original question, the SuperShelter is fairly straightforward to setup. Simply clip the end cords of the foam to the mitten hooks that you attached to your suspension, as per the instructions. Make sure the egg-crate (bumpy side) of the foam is facing up, and that the wider part is towards the head end (that's for your shoulders). Run the side tie outs through the matched portion of the foam -- this helps hold it to the side of your hammock.

I highly recommend using the overcover, as that blocks the wind and increases the efficiency of the foam, which is fairly porous. Don't forget to run the side tie-out cord through the holes on it as well. Practice getting the overcover on before you go -- it can be a bit fiddly -- the foot end, with the opening can kind of fold over on itself, making it tricky to line up. I always attach the head end first, then pick an edge and follow it down to make sure I attach the foot end to face the same way.

I also always use a space blanket (I prefer the Heat Sheet ones that are orange on one side and reflective on the other - they tend to be larger and a bit less prone to ripping. Place it above the foam, reflective side up, and just tuck any excess betweent he foam and the overcover.

I sleep very cold (and I'm acclimated to Texas temperatures), so that probably wouldn't be enough insulation for me personally, but that's the best configuration of the SuperShelter I know without adding other layers of insulation. I took that down to about 45° before I started feeling chilly, but that's just me.

Last edited by Throkda; 10-19-2012 at 13:51.
Reason: Ninja'd by BajaHanger!

"Can't we all just live in trees and hammocks?"
-- Sam Gribley, My Side of the Mountain

Using the undercover, underpad, space blanket...and then including a 20 deg bag in the hammock, I've slept down into the lower 30s with no issues. I'm pretty sure that I threw a fleece blanket between the space blanket and underpad when I slept in weather down to 22 deg F, with no issues at all. I've yet to use the overcover.

Using a sleeping bag and sleeping INSIDE the bag rather than just using it as a top quilt seems to let me go lower than others have with the HHSS...I suspect because I don't have any issues with warm air leaking out around me, and I do get SOME incremental benefit of the insulation of the bag that's compressed underneath me.

The advice on how to set the HHSS you've got here has all been spot on. Do that...and practice it in a safe location (backyard, or at least within decent range of the car while car camping). Once you get comfortable and know what YOUR limits with this system is...use as needed.

I also sleep kinda cold. I've used the SS without a space blanket down to 34 degrees and have been very comfortable. I don't see any benefit to leaving the undercover off. I saw a video on Hennessey's site that showed Tom stuffing the whole thing into a pack. That is how I do it and it works fine.